Sixers Coach Uncertain on Paul George's Return

On Friday night, the Philadelphia 76ers are set to wrap up their preseason as they welcome the Minnesota Timberwolves into the recently renamed Xfinity Mobile Arena. Their most recent game was against the Orlando Magic in mid-October, which saw the Sixers drop their third match of the preseason, which came despite an impressive offensive showing from Tyrese Maxey, who could drop 17 points on 50 percent shooting from the field.

While players having a slow return to action could be one reason for their early struggles, another could be the absence of some of their bigger names on the roster, with one of those being Paul George.

Paul George dribbles on the court. — Mar 1, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia 76ers forward Paul George (8) dribbles the ball against Golden State Warriors guard Gary Payton II (0) during the second quarter at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images | Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

The nine-time All-Star has been unavailable for Nick Nurse to use in the preseason as he continues to recover from a procedure in the Summer that was done to his left knee. This was the reason behind George’s first season in the City of Brotherly Love coming to an abrupt end, as the veteran received injections in his legs in early March.

During the 41 games on the court for the Sixers last season, George averaged 16.2 points and 5.3 rebounds per game, with his offensive production being a downgrade from what he averaged a year prior.

How has Paul George looked in practice?

Despite not making any appearances for the Sixers in the preseason, George has been a constant figure at the team’s training facility, with this most recent week showing significant progress in his recovery process. On Wednesday, the nine-time All-Star partook in a majority of Philadelphia’s practice, which included three-on-three work, the first chunk of live action he’s faced so far.

Paul George doing some extra work at Sixers practice#sixers pic.twitter.com/NVnISRLiIi
— Declan Harris (@DecIanH) October 14, 2025

Thursday would see George continue to make more headway in his recovery as he partook in full five-on-five drills. It's also worth pointing out that throughout these sessions, George has been seen working on his shooting after others have left the court.

Does this mean George will make his preseason debut on Friday night?

Despite the promising progress, the aforementioned Sixers’ head coach isn’t fully convinced that George will take to the court on Friday night.

“Nah, like yesterday was his first day of live… and today was a short amount of five-on-five, so we’ll just have to keep waiting,” Nurse stated to the press.

This will continue to leave players such as Justin Edwards, Kelly Oubre Jr, and Quentin Grimes to play that shooting guard wing spot left in the Sixers’ backcourt. The latter of that trio has yet to make an appearance for Philadelphia, after he picked up his qualifying offer for the upcoming NBA season.

The Sixers take on the Timberwolves on Friday night, with tip-off at the Xfinity Mobile Arena slated for 7:00 p.m. EST.